World War Z

With his novel “World War Z,” author Max Brooks won over a legion of readers, weaving an epic tale told from the perspective of the survivors of a global pandemic that saw the dead return to life. Now Brooks is bringing his realistic approach to fantastic storytelling to a paneled page with “Shadow Walk.” Available Wednesday, the new Legendary Comics release, co-created with comic creator-writer Mark Waid and artist Shane Davis, supposes that the Valley of Death from the Old Testament’s Psalm 23 does in fact exist, and it’s a place where anyone who ventures there is confronted by his or her deepest fears. In the first issue, John Raines, a soldier who allegedly killed his entire platoon after entering the Valley, leads a group that includes a priest and an astrophysicist back to the mysterious locale. Armed with two […]

One of the most anticipated launch titles for the Xbox One, “Dead Rising 3″ brings a new level of sophistication to the zombie franchise, employing an open-world approach that enables players to more deeply explore the game’s environments — thanks, in part, to the next-gen technology. After a well-received debut at last month’s Electronic Entertainment Expo, the Capcom title is getting a big push at Comic-Con International on Saturday with a panel titled “The Video Game Culture of Zombies: How ‘Dead Rising 3′ on Xbox One Kicks Off a New Generation of Mayhem.” Capcom will bring gameplay footage and its creative team to describe what’s next as the popular series evolves for the new console, and the discussion will also include commentary from Max Brooks, whose zombie novel “World War Z” spawned one of the summer’s biggest movie hits. Earlier […]

The new trailer for Brad Pitt’s globe-hopping pandemic thriller “World War Z” plays up the tension of the apocalyptic tale and concludes with scenes from one of the movie’s biggest action set pieces, a zombie outbreak aboard a plane. Directed by Marc Forster, “World War Z” centers on Pitt’s ex-U.N. investigator Gerry Lane, who races around the world trying to hunt down the origin of the disease that appears likely to wipe out mankind, hoping to find some way to bring humanity back from the brink and save his wife and daughters. Time is of the essence — it’s pointed out in the trailer that “Life as we know it will come to an end in 90 days.” Some of the images showcased in the new clip appear familiar — the chaos and confusion of a street scene, Lane and […]

It’s one of the biggest action set pieces in Paramount’s upcoming pandemic thriller, “World War Z.” A Belarus Airlines flight attendant opens a rattling closet door only to have a rabid zombie leap toward her. Moments later, a throng of newly turned zombies is sweeping toward the plane’s cockpit, and Brad Pitt’s ex-U.N. investigator Gerry Lane, reasoning that he’s got a better shot of surviving a crash than a zombie attack at 20,000 feet, grabs a grenade belonging to a soldier on the flight and blows apart the cabin. Gravity rips the zombies from the compromised fuselage into a bright blue sky, and Lane buckles in for dear life as the plane plummets earthward. “It’s something people haven’t seen before, an outbreak on a plane,” noted “World War Z” director Marc Forster, pausing for just a moment before making the […]

“World War Z” has unveiled a chilling new trailer and movie poster for the zombie apocalypse thriller. Instead of run-of-the-mill images of brain-eating zombies, we see disturbing images of infected, nearly rabid humans, like ants, swarming and surging toward their next feast. “World War Z,” slated for a June 21 release, is based on author Max Brooks’ bestselling book about a worldwide zombie epidemic. Directed by Oscar nominee Marc Forster, it stars Brad Pitt as Gerry Lane, a United Nations fact-finder and devoted dad who frantically hopscotches around the world in a desperate bid to determine the origin of the zombie pandemic and save humanity. Brooks’ book revolves around an interviewer collecting firsthand recollections of what happened when the zombies took over. The film scraps that POV to present a more Hollywood-friendly approach that features nonstop action, though director Forster has promised […]

“World War Z,” author Max Brooks’ best-selling novel about the aftermath of a worldwide zombie epidemic, has an almost supernatural ability to attract performers you wouldn’t normally associate with zombies. Brad Pitt is starring in the big-screen version, directed by Oscar nominee Marc Forster. And now an expanded version of the book on audio has added another high-brow performer: Oscar-winner Martin Scorsese. Scorsese will perform the role of Breck Scott, a corrupt pharmaceutical developer who sells the American public on a placebo he claims will cure the zombie disease. It’s a slickster role the fast-talking Scorsese surely knocks out of the park. He appears on the upcoming “World War Z: The Complete Edition” audiobook, which features five more hours of stories from the book that were previously unavailable in audiobook form. Other performers appearing in the newly recorded segments include […]

Forget the Ravens vs. the 49ers. How does “Star Trek” stack up against “Iron Man 3″? More than half of the grown-ups who tune in to the Super Bowl on Sunday will be watching not for the game, but for the ads, according to a recent poll by Harris Interactive. And movie fans in particular have a reason to stay put on the sofa during commercial breaks, with new spots expected for “Fast Six,” “Iron Man 3,” The Lone Ranger,” “Snitch,” “Star Trek Into Darkness,” “Oz the Great and Powerful” and “World War Z.” All in all, it’s a movie marketing bacchanal. Some studios have started teasing their Super Bowl ads early — an ad for an ad, if you will– and one is using the event as an occasion to debut its own app. So before you whip up […]

The zombie apocalypse is on its way. “We’ve lost the East Coast.” “China’s dark.” Indeed, things don’t look promising for the human race in the new teaser trailer for the Super Bowl spot for Paramount’s Brad Pitt zombie movie, “World War Z,” the Marc Forster-directed adaptation of Max Brooks’ acclaimed novel. It’s the first footage from the movie since the release of a gripping first trailer for the film debuted in November. That clip played like a taut thriller tapping into modern fears about the fall of mankind. “World War Z” stars Pitt as Gerry Lane, a United Nations fact-finder and family man who desperately races around the globe to determine the origins of a zombie pandemic that has toppled civilization in short order. Mireille Enos, of late of “The Killing,” plays his wife. Forster was an interesting choice to […]

“The Dark Knight Rises” might have been the most watched movie trailer on YouTube this year, but with 2013 just around the corner, we here at Hero Complex thought it would be fun to collect the trailers for some of next year’s big releases — many of which debuted in what seemed like an onslaught of promotion in the last few weeks. “Star Trek Into Darkness” J.J. Abrams’ much anticipated follow-up to his 2009 reboot of the landmark television series beams into theaters May 17, and fans got a taste of what to expect with the nine minutes of the movie that played before Imax screenings of “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.” But the question remains, who is the villain that Benedict Cumberbatch is playing? Some fans seem convinced that Cumberbatch would appear as Khan Noonien Singh, the character made […]

Fans who were disappointed that the release of Paramount’s big screen version of “World War Z” was delayed from December to next summer might have reason to feel some cheer. A gripping first trailer (below) for the Marc Forster-directed adaptation of Max Brooks’ acclaimed zombie novel was just released, and the clip plays like a taut thriller that taps into modern fears about the fall of mankind and the ongoing fascination with the idea of the zombie apocalypse. “World War Z” stars Brad Pitt as Gerry Lane, a United Nations fact-finder and family man who desperately races around the globe to determine the origins of a zombie pandemic that has toppled civilization in short order. Mireille Enos, of late of “The Killing,” stars as his wife. PHOTOS: On the set of ‘The Walking Dead’ Forster was an interesting choice to direct; […]